title: The IPCS Collaborative Study on Neurobehavioral Screening Methods: II. Protocol design and testing procedures.
abstract: This paper describes the development of the protocol for the International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS)-sponsored Collaborative Study on Neurobehavioral Screening Methods, including background on the methods and chemicals selected, as well as details concerning the conduct of the collaborative study, including proficiency testing, range-finding and main study. Participating laboratories in the collaborative study received training in the conduct and scoring of the behavioral tests and each laboratory received a video training film to train additional personnel as needed. Each of the eight laboratories that chose to participate in the study completed proficiency testing and assessed seven representative chemicals using a functional observational battery and automated motor activity assessment. The seven chemicals studied were acrylamide, bis-acrylamide, p,p'-DDT, lead acetate, parathion, toluene, and triethyl tin. Participants received coded samples of the chemicals from a common source. Each laboratory derived doses for single and repeated administration based on the determination of a within-laboratory acute "top dose." Animal strains were not standardized and laboratory conditions were standardized to a limited degree in order to judge the general utility and robustness of these procedures in a diversity of testing situations.
authors.affiliation: Neurotoxicology Division, US Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711, USA.
authors.forename: V C
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Moser
authors.forename: H A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Tilson
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: MacPhail
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Becking
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cuomo
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Frantík
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Kulig
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Winneke
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical / Q000379:methods; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012107:Research Design; D018675:Toxicity Tests / Q000379:methods*; D015262:Xenobiotics / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D015262:Xenobiotics